CAIRO: Etisalat Misr, the Egyptian arm of Abu Dhabi-based telecoms group Etisalat, has delayed a listing on Egypt’s stock exchange until market conditions improve, daily newspaper Al-Mal quoted the head of Etisalat Misr as saying.
Political turmoil in the wake of the uprising that toppled president Hosni Mubarak has hit Egypt’s economy and frozen business plans for many firms operating in the country.
Etisalat Misr had planned, prior to the uprising, to list 15-25 percent of its shares on the Egyptian exchange, Al-Mal quoted chief executive Saleh Al-Abdouli as saying.
"The significant impact (of the uprising) on the capital markets reduces the feasibility of the share listing, especially in light of the reduced liquidity circulating in the market," Abdouli told Al-Mal.
Etisalat Misr had approached eight Egyptian and regional investment banks to provide financial and legal advisory services, including EFG-Hermes, HSBC and Citibank before the uprising.
Abdouli said Etisalat Misr was still looking to set the right time for the launch.
